When It Comes to Immigration Two Steps Forward and Three Steps Back

Dear All:

This week was two steps forward and three steps back as the New York Times spun out their take of President Donald Trump speaking about legal immigration to a room full of CEOs stating:

A “person who was in the room recalled that Mr. Trump made the point that the high-skilled immigrants who received an American education could either be successful in the U.S. or in their home countries. He said that the best and the brightest were needed to help America.”

While New York Times may construe this as blanket entry for high-skilled immigrants, President Trump’s strategic understanding of the situation is better summed up in a speech he made back in 2016, when he stated, “It’s our right as a sovereign nation to choose immigrants that we think are the likeliest to thrive and flourish and love us.”

As it goes, U.S. universities gladly admit foreign students because they pay full tuition. And students are happy to pay it. Why? Because an unconstitutional program created entirely without congress' approval, the Optional Practical Training (OPT), grants them a three-year work permit if they graduate with a STEM degree, and also improves their odds for obtaining a pathway towards citizenship.

Moreover, foreign graduates on OPT have a competitive advantage over U.S. citizens when it comes to getting that first job after college. Hiring an OPT worker v. a citizen or permanent lawful resident amounts to a 15.3% discount per student because both the employer and foreign graduate are exempt from paying Medicare and Social Security taxes.

The stapling a Green Card to a diploma narrative is flawed because it’s attempting to solve a problem that doesn’t exist. It would also create a moral hazard whereby some foreign students may aspire to attend top tier academic institutions but, MOST would be satisfied with fifth tier, as they’re here expressly to procure a Green Card. With roughly one million foreign students from 200 countries, U.S. institutions would become de facto immigration processing centers.

According to a story in the Wall Street Journal, only a net 700 IT service sector jobs were created in 2023. As we pointed out in a recent podcast, it’s no wonder the 107,000 Americans who graduated with degrees in computer science this year are having great difficulty landing jobs. The bottom line is no one is “flourishing;” not foreigners or Americans graduating with STEM degrees.

More importantly, we already have in place an immigration visa program that allows for truly exceptional talent individuals to apply – the O-Visa! If they truly possess an extraordinary ability that would benefit the United States, there's nothing stopping foreigners from applying and proving their case. This is how we bring extraordinary talent to the U.S. – not by automatically stapling a Green Card to a diploma that anyone could qualify for by merely attending any American institution.

In closing, if want a glimpse of what it looks like when a country enacts a “staple a Green Card to a diploma” policy, read our latest piece titled, “Oh My Gosh Canada.”  Things are not going well with our neighbor to the north.

Onward,

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